"What? You bastard, who told you to sign up with your second brother? Your father and I were discussing it, and your second brother didn't want him to go. How old are you and you want to go? You're really asking for trouble."
The old mother was unhappy when she heard this. The third son was only fifteen years old after the Chinese New Year. Although he looked very strong, his actual age was too young. Both sons wanted to go to Goguryeo, and the old couple were unwilling to do so no matter what.
The old man also picked up the stick beside him and was about to hit the third son. Who would have thought that the son he beat before would run all over the street, but now the third son directly snatched the stick away, which also showed that his strength was no less than that of an adult.
"Mom and Dad, don't rush into the fight. My second and eldest brothers and I have discussed this. My eldest brother will stay home to take care of you and your younger brother, and the two of us will go over there to explore the world together. We'll have someone to look after us. The teachers at the academy have all said that I'm a bit of a loner, and there's no point in continuing to study there. It's better for me to find a job. There's so much land over there. My eldest brother and I can split two hundred acres over there, and we'll also be assigned people to work with. We'll just have something to eat. My eldest brother and I have calculated that by the end of the year we'll have plenty of grain. We'll sell it and have someone send it back, and our whole family can eat white flour every day..."
Although the third child is still a child, he spoke these words very smoothly. It can be imagined that he has been thinking about it for a long time. The old couple looked at each other. They also had ideas about white flour, but who among the common people dared to eat that thing every day? Don’t you know how much that thing is worth?
I didn't dare to think about it before, but now the times have changed, haven't they? After the two sons passed away, there were only 200 acres of land. Even if there were natural disasters or man-made disasters, the grain produced by these 200 acres of land would be a considerable amount. In addition to half of it being handed over to the court, the rest could be sold and sent by someone else, which would also improve the family's life.
"Mom and Dad, what the third brother said is right. I've thought about it too. In the future, my eldest brother will be able to take care of the five acres of thin land and have something to eat. Dad's stall will be given to the fourth brother. Maybe the fourth brother is good at studying and won't need these things in the future. Then the third brother and I will go out and make a living and earn a living for Mom and Dad."
What the third son said might be what a child said, and the family members didn't dare to believe it, but when it came from the second son, it was basically the same, because the second son has always been very opinionated.
Although they don't talk to each other normally, if they don't go to Goguryeo, the family will be squeezed in this broken house, and sooner or later there will be a war. Although the brothers are still relatively harmonious now, will they still be able to maintain this harmony when the eldest sister-in-law comes into the family?
Take the two rooms in front of us for example. Now my parents live in one room, and my four brothers live in one room. When the eldest sister-in-law comes, she will have to give advice to the eldest brother. My parents and the other three brothers will live in one room. Maybe this can be maintained, but what if the eldest brother has children and the second brother gets married? Will there be any other houses?
Now the imperial court has said that after you arrive there, you will first live in the military camp. The military camp will give you materials for building houses and some Goguryeo people to help you. After you arrive there, you can first command them to build the houses. After the houses are built, the imperial court will allocate land to you. Before the grain is harvested, you can borrow grain from the imperial court. After your grain is harvested, you can return it to the imperial court. It will take at most two years. By the third year, half of the grain in the land will belong to you.
“But but…”
The old man thought for a long time but in the end said nothing. He knew the family's financial situation better than anyone else. If there was anything to blame, it was because there were too many children. But in today's era, if there were few boys in the family, the income would be even less.
The situation of Old Liu's family is not an isolated case. During the last two days of registration, the Chang'an County Government Office was almost overcrowded. Originally, there were only more than 10,000 places allocated, but in the end, nearly 20,000 people came. Chang'an County Magistrate Cui Yunzhu didn't know what to say and kept hoping that Goguryeo could give more places.
In the past, those who caused trouble around Chang'an City were basically these landless farmers. They did not have any assets. Once there was an opportunity to cause trouble, these people would rush forward with their farm tools, bringing a lot of instability to the society. Now these people can finally be sent away, and Cui Yunzhu also thinks it is a good thing. Who knew that there were not enough places.
At the beginning, many people were unwilling to go, but everyone knows how to do the math. Once they do the math, they will quickly understand what to choose. It's nothing more than living in another place. As the saying goes, a moving man lives and a moving tree dies. You won't have a good life in Chang'an City, but maybe you can have a better life by moving to another place?
Some foreign envoys in Chang'an City also heard about the Tang Dynasty's move. Although they did not say anything, they were very afraid in their hearts. If they offended the Tang Dynasty, they would probably be conquered by the Tang army.
If the Tang army implemented such a policy on their land, it might not be noticeable within two or three years. After five or six years, the local area might be full of Tang people, and the Tang people would all be local landlords. Who would remember that there was a country on this land?
Therefore, during this period in Chang'an City, the foreign envoys were very respectful, including Li Shimin, who felt that these foreign envoys were a little too respectful. However, Li Shimin was in a very good mood. The first group of people to Goguryeo would set off tomorrow. Li Shimin was really happy to see that the court had such efficient work efficiency.
Li Shimin himself did not leave the city, but asked Crown Prince Li Chengqian and Prince of Wei Li Tai to leave the city at the same time to see him off. This was the first time that a royal family member had seen off an ordinary citizen, and it was considered a very high standard.
"Farewell, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. Farewell, His Royal Highness the King of Wei."
More than 3,000 common people knelt on the ground to bid farewell to the two princes. Li Chengqian and Li Tai were both moved. These were common people who went to the border to guard the Tang Dynasty. They would definitely make contributions to the Tang Dynasty in the future. Both of them got off their horses and bowed deeply.
